Recipe for Spicy Tomato Chutney for the Holidays
Because of the abundance of tomatoes this year, I set out to
find a way to incorporate them into a holiday dish. Some of the traditional chutney recipes have
always left me cold, so I decided to create my own to go along with my Boxing
Day cold turkey. You won't find anything
quite like this in stores, so grab it while you can!
If you want to create more than two small 250-gram jam jars'
worth, just multiply the ingredients by two.
For this recipe, you will need: 8 fresh red
chili peppers, 8 fresh tomatoes, 1 large onion, 2 fresh bay leaves, 1
cinnamon stick, 1 teaspoon of sea salt, 1 teaspoon of freshly crushed black
pepper, 100 grams of demerara sugar, 1 heaping table spoon of selected and
chopped rosemary leaves, 150 milliliters of balsamic vinegar.
Jam Pots
You'll need two sterilized, high-quality jam jars. These must be disinfected to eliminate the
risk of microorganisms spoiling the stored items. You can accomplish this in two ways. Before beginning this recipe, clean the jars
and lids by either running them through the dishwasher or bringing them to a
slow boil in a large pan of water for 5 minutes. In either case, I like to keep the jars warm
and dry in the oven until I'm ready to fill them with chutney, so that no mold
spores may settle on them while I'm working.
Method
1.
First, chillies are not just fiery when eaten;
they may also cause serious burns if not handled properly during
preparation. You risk severe pain if you
contact your eyes after slicing them, and they can burn your skin. This is a once-in-a-lifetime error at
most! Wear gloves and promptly wash your
hands with lots of hot soap and water after handling chilies.
2.
Second, you could simply wash, deseed, and cut
the chilies, but I find that charring them over a gas flame or under the grill
and then peeling off the skin results in a richer, sweeter flavor.
3.
Prick the chilies all over before putting them
under a grill, otherwise they may burst and harm you.
4.
Char them on both sides.
5.
Take off the grill, flip into a bowl, and cover
with plastic wrap for ten minutes. The
steam will make the skins more pliable, making it simpler to peel them off and
extract the seeds.
6.
In a separate pan, heat the olive oil, bay
leaves, cinnamon stick, and pepper over low heat for 15 minutes. 6 Meanwhile,
finely cut the onion and add it to the pan.
7.
Seven, peel the peppers and discard the seeds
and skins. You should get the meaty part
just under the skin, and it's fantastic if some of the black rubs off the skins
onto the meat, since it makes for a more flavorful meal. The skins themselves can provide an
unpleasant crispness to the finished chutney and should be avoided if possible.
8.
To get a nice pulp without big bits of peel, put
the tomatoes in a magi-mix and pulse them until you have a great consistency.
9.
Chopping the peppers finely, but not too small,
will release their flavor and texture.
10.
Tomato pulp, sugar, balsamic vinegar, and
chilies should be added to the onions at this point, and the mixture should be
brought to a boil.
11.
Once the mixture has come to a boil, reduce the
heat and let it simmer until it has thickened into chutney.
12.
Season to taste with salt and pepper.
13.
Get rid of the bay leaves and cinnamon stick in
step.
14.
After the jam jars have warmed up, carefully
spoon in the hot liquid and quickly secure the lids.
15.
Put on a label with the date you made it and let
it cool on the counter.
16.
Keep in a cool, dark place for up to three
months, then consume.
That your family has as much fun eating this at
Christmastime with cold meats as mine does.
Putting it in a pretty jar with a custom label makes for a great holiday
present. It's the kind of unique and
special Christmas present that anyone would appreciate receiving.
